


Purely Business

by The_Chronic_Cryptid



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, M/M, Not Beta Read, Not Canon Compliant, Severus Snape Lives
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 09:02:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22474564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Chronic_Cryptid/pseuds/The_Chronic_Cryptid
Summary: Three years after Hogwarts Draco Malfoy puts an ad in the Daily Prophet offering tutoring services. Of course, the only person to respond to his ad is Harry Potter who has found himself with two lordships and no idea how to handle them. And while Draco is up to the task to teach him, how long can he keep things purely business?
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Comments: 6
Kudos: 133





	Purely Business

Harry slid into a little shop called the Em-Pour-ium through its bright blue door. A bell tinkled over his head to announce his entry. Glancing around, he took in the crystal chandelier that cast flecks of rainbow around the room. The rainbow lights flickered against the tea sets that lined the display shelves. A gentle smell of lavender wafted into Harry's nose. He reached forward to run his finger along the golden rim of one of the teacups, its shiny surface attracting the flecks of rainbow. 

"You break it, you buy it, Potter." A voice broke the silence behind him. The hairs stood up on the back of Harry's neck. Harry snapped his hand back from the teacup like someone smacked it. He whirled around to face none other than Draco Malfoy. Eyes wide, he took in the blond. They hadn't seen each other since they left Hogwarts three years ago. Draco looked taller, dressed in pinstripe trousers and a matching waistcoat. The rolled-up sleeves of his white shirt were crispy pressed, "Is there something I can do for you, Potter?"

Harry swallowed the growing lump in his throat. He reached into the back pocket of his tatty muggle jeans and pulled out a crumpled newspaper clipping. It clung to his clammy fingers, but he managed to get it unfurled on the glass countertop. 

Draco wrinkled his nose. He leaned over to see the advertisement he's put in the Prophet weeks ago for the side business he'd started out of his tea shop. A tutoring service aimed primarily for children who were waiting for their Hogwarts acceptances. He smirked, "And what exactly do you need a tutor for Potter?" Blushing, Harry twirled his lord rings around on his fingers. He'd become Lord Potter and Lord Black when he came of age, but it didn't mean he was ready for all the responsibilities that came along with it.

"I need you to teach me how to be a lord," Draco smirked. The skin around the blond's blue eyes crinkled. He covered his mouth with one of his manicured hands to muffle the chuckles that escaped out of his thin lips. Harry frowned. He dug his fingernails into his palms to stop himself from lashing out, "I'm serious." 

Draco caught sight of Harry's bawled fists and gritted teeth. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the crystal chandelier overhead wavering in the charged air. Sighing, he schooled his humor and wiped a fleck of moisture out of the corner of his eyes.

"My apologies, I'm not trying to mock you, really." He leaned over to the flip-up part of the counter and opened it for Harry, "Come to the back room and we'll chat over some tea." Harry shuffled after Draco, his hands stuffed in his pockets. They walked through a doorway with a hanging curtain of beads. The beads swung back and forth, clacking in Harry's ears. He snatched his glasses off his nose to wipe off the fog building up into the lenses from the warmth in the room. Shoving them back on his nose, he peered around the cozy little tearoom. 

Draco brushed past him in the small space to start brewing tea. Harry stood in the doorway, shifting foot to foot. The blond glanced back and rolled his eyes. He set down the kettle with a gentle clatter and rested his hands on Harry's shoulders. Draco steered him toward a set of plush armchairs in one of the corners of the room. He sunk into the thick cushion and waited. The blond bustled around the little kitchenette to prepare the tea, "Be a dear and go choose two teacups from the other room, would you?" He called over his shoulder. 

Harry hopped up, glad to have something to do. He slid back between the beaded curtain. The rainbows danced around the room, reflecting off the glazed teacups. Scanning the shelves, he caught sight of a blue set of cups, as bright as the door to the teashop. Raised dots of green colors speckled their surfaces. He stood on his tiptoes and lifted down the cups with their matching saucers. After stacking them carefully, he carried them back into the back room.

He brought them to the little side table, sinking back into the plush cushion, “Which kind of tea would you like, I’ve got black, green, earl grey, blueberry, orange-jasmine, peppermint, or chamomile?” Harry bit his lip, “Or I’ll just surprise you?” Nodding, Harry watched him fix the tea, “You picked what has to be the simplest set of cups I have in the shop, Potter.”

“Sorry? Draco smirked, pushing a teacup with three cubes of sugar and a healthy dash of cream into Harry’s hands. He crossed his legs, waiting for Harry to take a sip. Harry lifted the cup to his lips and took a drink. A light taste that reminded him of apples washed over his tongue. He let out a happy sigh, settling deeper into the cushions.

“Don’t be, I like to see what people choose. It tells me a lot about them.”

“What does it tell you about me?” Harry asked. Draco smiled down into his tea. He shook his head.

“That’s for me to know, Potter. Now onto business, what skills do you think you lack to be a proper lord?” Harry fumbled his teacup, almost dropping it on the thick carpet beneath his feet, “Other than a certain lack of grace.” Setting aside the teacup, he laced his fingers together until his knuckles were white.

“I dunno, all of it, I guess. My parents weren’t around to tell me all the etiquette and tradition stuff that comes with lordships. Now I have two of them.” He showed Draco the rings on his finger. Draco nodded.

“So, we’ll be starting from the ground up then. I’ll need a down payment 250 Galleons-” Harry reached into his pocket, tugging out a pouch of coins. He tossed the bag to the blond. The clink of coins echoed through the little room.

“There’s 1000 in there. If that’s not enough, let me know.” Draco rolled his eyes but pocketed the coin purse. Stopping Potter from throwing his money around. That would have to be a lesson. He reached for a pad of paper, summoning a quill from the other side of the room to make a list of everything he’d have to do to fix Harry Potter. To turn him into a proper lord.

“That’s sufficient to start. We’ll start first thing tomorrow and whatever I say goes. Do we have an arrangement?” He asked. Draco offered Harry a hand. An image flashed into his head of a much younger Malfoy on a train platform, a hand offered out to shake. A younger version of himself whipped his hand away, refusing whatever Draco had to offer. But he grasped Draco’s hand in a firm shake. He and the blond grinned at each other, “Then pleasure doing business with you.”

***

Harry stood behind a thin curtain in the corner of Draco’s tearoom. There might as well have been no curtain. He was sure that Draco could see every outline of his body behind it. Boxes of clothes filled up space around his feet. Dress robes, day robes, trousers, shirts, sweaters, and a modest collection of shoes spilled out of the boxes. He yanked his t-shirt off, replacing it with a green button-down. Harry slid his arms down the sleeves, the material soft against his skin. The old, muggle jeans he replaced with a pair of charcoal trousers.

Before he had them fully buttoned, Draco pushed the curtain aside and pulled Harry into the light. Draco circled around him. He tugged the sleeves down on Harry’s arms, smoothing out the material before folding them into crisp cuffs around his elbows.

“When you wear shirts like this, they need to be tucked in, Potter.” The blond watched Harry stuffed the rest of the material into his waistband. Draco rolled his eyes. He brushed Harry’s hands away to smooth out the material himself, his hands dipping around Harry’s waist to fix the shirt. Blushing at the sudden intrusion, Harry backed away stiffly, “Relax, this is purely business. Now, put on the charcoal day robe on over this and put on your boots, then we’ll have some tea.” Harry dipped back into the corner of the room to get his boots and robe. He stuffed his feet into the boots, layering the robe over the outfit.

He retreated to his plush chair in the corner to watch Draco prepare the tea. If this first lesson was anything to go off of, it seemed the clothes made the lord. But there had to be much more than outfits. Once the kettle was on, Draco dipped back through the beaded curtains to fetch teacups. He returned with a set of deep blue cups with silver rims. Little silver flecks speckled the surface like a night sky. Draco pressed one of the cups into Harry’s hands. A waft of lavender tickled his nose. He watched the blond slid into the chair beside him. Draco crossed his legs, hands folded on his knees, “Now, let’s go over when you think it’s appropriate to wear an outfit like this.”

“For everyday use, and because I’ve got the day robe on it’s appropriate to wear if I’m invited to a daytime event like a tea.” Draco nodded, sipped his tea, and placed the set back on the table.

“Good, now once you finish your tea, go put on something you think would be appropriate for a ball.” Harry groaned. He sunk lower into the cushion of his chair, savoring his tea. Agreeing to do whatever Draco said seemed less of a good idea by the moment, but he had to keep to his word. He downed his tea and slid back behind the curtains for a new outfit.

He scrounged up a burgundy waistcoat out of the pile, trading his green shirt for a white one. He slipped into the fitted burgundy trousers with a black stripe that ran down the side of his leg. Sliding on his black dress robes, he brushed them down and straightened everything before returning to Draco. The blond nodded, he held up a hand to signal Harry to turn. He turned, redder than the undertones in his waistcoat and trousers, “Now, if you really wanted to be civilized, I’d insist you switch out those boots for dress shoes, but I don’t want to push it.” Draco smirked, “Now take off the dress robe, we’re going to the front of the store.”

Harry slid out of the dress robe, following Draco until the blond sent him back to fold his crumpled robe over the back of the chair. With the nod of approval, he wandered through the beaded curtain. He fiddled with the beads until Draco tugged him away from the doorway.

“Do I work here now?” Harry asked, a little bemused. Draco shrugged.

“Remains to be seen. So, if you’re invited to tea then eventually, you’ll have to return the favor. Let’s go over how to serve tea in a slightly more formal setting than between school companions.”

Harry pushed himself up on the countertop, legs swinging back and forth while Draco instructed him on how to properly serve tea to others. Draco’s s instructions stopped when the bell tinkled overhead. Harry slid off the counter. His mouth fell open at the sight of Severus Snape standing in the doorway. Swallowing, Harry resisted the urge to slip behind Draco. But he’d already been seen.

“Now, this is something I never expected to see.” Snape drawled. Harry shivered through the thin material of his dress shirt, “Good morning, Draco, Lord Potter.” Harry swallowed. He nodded at the old potion’s professor. A swift cuff knocked into the back of Harry’s head. Cringing, Harry nursed the spot that Draco smacked. He grimaced and turned back to Draco. The blond crossed his arms across his chest.

“Lords greet people properly, Potter. Otherwise, you’re going to offend someone. Do it right.” The back of his head stung, but he turned back to the potion’s professor, standing up straight.

“My apologies, good morning professor.” Draco snorted. The man seemed equally amused by his performance.

“Thank you, though I believe at this point in your life I’m not your professor. Severus would suffice.” Harry’s eyes went wide behind his glasses, but he nodded stiffly.

“Harry, then.” Severus cocked his head at Draco.

“Dare I ask what’s going on?” Draco grinned.

“Remember the ad I placed in the Prophet a few weeks ago?” Snape nodded, “Harry’s my first client. He’s learning to be a lord.” Severus hummed, his thin lips twitching into something that resembled a smile.

“And how is he as a student?” Draco slung his arm around Harry’s shoulder.

“He’s the worst I’ve ever had.” Harry frowned, mouth opening for an argument. He was trying his best. They hadn’t started all that long ago. Draco couldn’t expect a miracle. Before he could get a word out, one of Draco’s fingers pressed against his lips to shush him, “But since he’s my first, he’s lucky enough to be the best one too.” Harry flushed from how close the blond was to him. He wriggled away from his grasp and retreated back to his seat on the counter. Draco shook his head, smiling softly at Harry before turning to Severus, “What can I get for you?” He asked.

“Some of that jasmine tea and a tin of those biscuits you brought me last month.” Draco turned to Harry who was still squirming on the countertop. Deciding to give him a little reprieve, he said,

“Potter, be a dear and get a box of the jasmine tea and one of those green biscuit tins from the back.” Harry’s shoulders relaxed. He jumped and dodged through the beaded curtains, leaving them clacking behind them.

“You too seem quite close. How long have you been together?” Severus lifted one of the teacups off the shelf. He turned it round in his hand. Draco shook his head. Taking the teacup back, he placed it on one of the high shelves.

“It’s not like that Uncle Sev, it’s purely business.” The older man raised an eyebrow but before he could say anything else, Harry ducked back through the curtains with the requested items. He set the tea and tin up on the countertop, “Thanks, you can go back to the sitting room if you like. I’ll be back in a minute.” He bent down to pull a few sheets of tissue paper out so he could wrap up the items. Harry hadn’t moved, instead, he looked at his old potion’s professor.

“It was good to see you again, Severus,” Harry said, the young man’s tanned face was flushed pink through his cheeks.

“You as well, good day.” A brief nod passed between them before Harry turned on his heel and escaped the room. When the beads stopped shaking, Severus collected his bag from Draco, “It seems he can be taught.” Draco nodded. He smiled fondly back toward the curtains, “I’ll see you Sunday for dinner, correct?” Draco nodded again. Snape strode to the door, the bell tinkling overhead, “And Draco, I wouldn’t mind if you brought a guest.”

The door swung shut, leaving a flustered Draco behind.

***

Draco draped a sheet around Harry’s shoulders, breathing close to his neck when he tucked it into one of Harry’s new sweaters. Harry bit his lip.

“I don’t think this is a good idea.” He caught the blond’s eyes in the reflection of the ornate mirror. Draco tousled the dark locks that flopped around Harry’s glasses, “Haircuts and I don’t turn out well. It just grows back in a few hours.”

“Correction, Scarface. It just grows back if you don’t like the cut, and that was accidental magic. You’re not a little boy anymore, you’re one of the most powerful wizards in Britain. Let’s make you look like it.” Harry gulped but nodded his head. He didn’t have much of a choice. Draco would get his way, one way or another. Stiffening, he felt his glasses slide off his nose. Everything blurred. Harry shivered, he shook his head and reached out for his glasses.

He felt Draco’s hands on his shoulders giving them a soft squeeze to settle him, “You’re fine Harry, they were going to get in the way. I’ll give them back as soon as I’m finished. Would you like a calming draught before I start?” Harry shook his head. He didn’t want to be drugged, “Tea?” Harry shook his head. Knowing Draco, he’d slip a calming draught into the tea anyway. He gripped the arms of the chair.

“Just do it.” The hands left his shoulders after one final squeeze. Harry listened to the clip of Draco’s shoes against the tile floor. A clatter of metal and plastic carried to his ears, though he tried not to think about it. He squinted to try to make out what Draco was doing, but beyond the blur of blond hair he couldn’t make out anything. Closing his eyes, he leaned back and waited.

A gentle mist of water flowed around his head. Freshly damp hair clung to his cheeks and the back of his neck. Draco’s fingers ran through the strands of hair, teasing out tangles. His buffed nails tickled Harry’s scalp in a way that made Harry melt. He let out a happy sigh, settling deeper into the chair.

Draco leaned down, muttering in his ear, “Don’t look now Potter, but I think you’re enjoying this.” Harry didn’t answer, “You might even be purring.” Harry swatted at the blurry form next to his face. He missed, but he expected that he would, “Oh settle down, I’m just teasing. It’s a lot more fun now than when we were kids.” Harry nodded. He had to admit that he much preferred Draco Malfoy as a friend than as an enemy.

“I’m glad I shook hands with you this time around.”

“You’re glad now, just wait to see how much gladder you’ll be when I’m finished with your hair.” He ran his fingers through Harry’s hair for one last time, “Now’s the part where I need you to stay still for me.” Harry shut his eyes. He couldn’t see anything anyway. A comb flattened his wiry hair down around his cheeks and down on his neck. Cool metal brushed against his neck, making Harry want to jump out of his skin. But he stopped himself.

Bits of hair fell away from the sides of his hair, quickly. Harry had a feeling he was in for much more than a trim. He wondered if he’d have any hair left at all. It would grow back in a few hours if he hated it, but he didn’t want to hate it. Harry didn’t want to hate anything that had to do with Draco anymore. The tea-loving blond was growing on him more and more by the day.

Draco set the scissors down. He massaged Harry’s scalp again, gently scratching the shortened hair on the sides of Harry’s head. He’d left the top long, just shaped and neatened it up. Dipping into a small cannister, he coated his fingers in a lightly scented cream before running them through Harry’s hair. Harry hummed. He curled into Draco’s hands, “Almost done.” He muttered, fluffing up the front of Harry’s hair into a gentle swoop. Wiping his hands on the sheet, he tugged it away from Harry’s neck in the same motion, “There, that wasn’t so bad was it?” Harry shrugged. He hadn’t seen it yet to know. One of his hands swept to the table beside him to find his glasses.

He heard Draco click his tongue, then his glasses slid back onto his nose, “There you go.” Harry blinked at his reflection in the mirror. The person staring back at him didn’t look like the scruffy teenager he’d seen in the mirror for years and years. No, the person in the mirror looked like a man, “A lord.” Draco whispered in his ear like he read Harry’s mind, “So will it grow back by the morning?” He asked.

Harry shook his head fast enough that some of the excess cream sprayed out of his hair. Draco grimaced, wiping the flecks off his cheeks.

“Sorry.” He offered.

“It’s fine. If you want to make it up to me, I’ve been invited to a dinner tomorrow night and I need a plus one.” Harry’s eyes widened behind the lenses of his glasses. He brushed any remaining hairs off the back of his neck.

“And you want me to go with you?” His voice rose and cracked. Draco nodded.

“Of course, it’ll be good practice for your lessons to try to behave in polite company.” Harry’s shoulders drooped. His gaze fell to the toes of his boots. Right, even being asked to dinner was purely business. He didn’t know why it bothered him so much, but it did. He swallowed a lump in his throat and dragged his gaze up to catch Draco smirking, “I’ll be by at 6:00 to help you choose your outfit and fix your hair.” Harry rolled his eyes, but with one look at Draco’s wide eyes, he nodded.

“Sounds fun.” He muttered, not sounding too convinced. But the blond clapped his hands together, eyes shining in a way that made Harry smile anyway.

***

Draco hadn’t mentioned that the dinner invitation was from Severus Snape. Harry tugged on the hem of his green sweater, the one that Draco insisted he wore because it brought out his eyes. He sat in the parlor next to Draco, waiting for their host to return with tea for them.

“Quit fiddling with it, you’re going to stretch it out and it’s not lord like,” Draco ordered. He stopped, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his trousers instead. Still not lord like, but if it kept him from destroying his sweater Draco seemed content enough.

“You could have tol-” Harry crossed his arms. Draco shook his head.

“If I did, you wouldn’t have agreed to come.” Harry opened his mouth to argue, but the blond cocked his head to the side. He couldn’t argue, because Draco was right. The evening hadn’t been unpleasant so far. Severus served a roast dinner that could make any one’s mouth water, with a pudding that had Harry begging for the recipe until the older man complied. He peered around the room instead of meeting Draco’s smug look. His eyes traveled over knickknacks and old books until they settled on something glossy in the corner of the room.

A piano.

“Does he play?” Harry asked. Draco snorted.

“If he wasn’t a potion’s master, he’d be a concert pianist. He’s incredible, I bet if you wheedle him as you did for the recipe he’ll agree.”

“And what exactly am I agreeing to, darling nephew?” Severus drawled. He swept into the room with a tray floating behind him. Flicking his wand, the teacups drifted into waiting hands.

“A brief performance.” Draco tilted his hand toward the piano in the corner, “Potter needs a dance lesson, so we’ll need some music to work with. Harry snapped his head toward Draco, shaking his head. Snape chuckled.

“It seems your partner is more reluctant to perform than I am. But if it makes you feel better, Harry I won’t be watching. The music will have my full attention.” He swept over to the piano and took his place on the bench. Draco peeled the teacup out of Harry’s hands and tugged him up out of his seat to a clear spot on the floor. He clasped one of Harry’s hands, stretching them out away from the. The other arms crooked against each other on the other side.

“Relax, just follow my lead. Like in all our other lessons.” Severus began a gentle waltz. Draco muttered the counts in Harry’s ear, steering him around in time to the music. Harry stumbled along with Draco. The last time he danced was the yule ball in his fourth year. He was abysmal then and hadn’t gotten any better since, “Look at me, not your feet.” Draco’s voice cut through his musings. Harry dragged his eyes up from his boots. He gripped Draco’s hand tighter, “Better.”

They traveled around the cleared space on the floor, until Harry found his stride. He whirled around with the blond’s muscular frame steadying him. The music lulled Harry into an almost trance, finding himself at ease. His eyes locked on Draco’s sparkling blue eyes. He never realized it before, but they were the same color as the door to the Em-Pour-ium. Somewhere he was feeling increasingly at home.

In the middle of a pivot, Harry slipped. He fell backward toward the floor, gasping. Moving quickly Draco tucked one of his arms under Harry’s back before he hit the ground, lifting him back to his feet. The piano music stopped.

Severus turned from his seat on the piano bench to see Draco clutching Harry in a tight embrace. Shaking his head, he turned back to the piano to start a new song. The two hadn’t seemed to notice he stopped playing. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of his nephew running a hand through Harry’s hair. He muttered something into Potter’s ear that made the young man blush. Draco tucked his hand under Harry’s chin, dragging his gaze up from his shoes. The two moved closer together.

Severus shifted to give them some privacy. He rolled his eyes. Like anyone could believe what was going on between those two was purely business.

**Author's Note:**

> Please do not copy to other sites or translate to other languages!


End file.
